Free Love's Road Home by Lisa Lewis

Beth’s shirt up, reached to release the front clasp of her satin ivory-colored bra.
    "Hey, Tommy, you in there?"
    A loud banging on the door at Beth’s back accompanied Leo’s intrusive question.
    "You wanna grab something to eat before we go on? George ordered in some Chinese."
    Tom lowered his hands to Beth’s hips and rested his forehead against hers. He closed his eyes and let out a haggard breath.
    Bad timing once again, but it really was for the best. Bethany deserved better than to be groped in a dressing room while various cohorts milled nearby. If she still intended to have sex with him, he was going to make sure it happened in a relatively classy place. Not backstage at the Macon City Auditorium.
    "Yeah," he called back to his friend. "I’ll be right there."
    Tom adjusted Beth’s shirt and stepped back from her. She looked just as dazed as he felt. When he kissed her he lost all touch with reality, and Leo’s knock had brought him back with a crash.
    "Sorry about that. I didn’t mean to get so carried away. Not here, anyway."
    Beth’s gaze sharpened. "I’m glad you added that last part. If you’d tried to apologize yet again for kissing me, I would’ve clocked you. In case you didn’t notice, I wasn’t telling you to stop."
    "I know. You were right there with me." Tom grinned. "I guess you really do find me irresistible."
    Beth rolled her eyes and playfully slapped his arm. "Oh, pul-leeze ," she said. "You just happened to be available at the moment. I could suck face with any one of a million guys if I really wanted to."
    Tom’s grin faltered a bit, but he quickly caught it. He knew Beth meant it as a joke, but he also realized the truth. She was so beautiful and funny and intelligent that she really could be with whomever she chose. He felt lucky she’d picked him.
    "C’mon," he said, pulling Beth away from the door so he could open it. "Let’s go get some grub before all the orange chicken and egg rolls are gone. I need more than rice to sustain me."
    Beth followed him into the hall but then stopped.
    "I need to go check out some lines. Cole thought he’d seen some fraying but he can’t remember exactly where. I told him I’d help him look."
    Tom was disappointed he wouldn’t be seeing her again until after the performance, but he understood. Beth wasn’t one to take her responsibilities lightly.
    "All right. We definitely don’t want any equipment malfunctions when we’re on." He leaned down for a final kiss. "Go make us look good."
    Beth walked away, moving back toward the auditorium. But he still heard her parting comment. " Hmmph . You do that just fine on your own."
    A huge smile spread across Tom’s face as he headed toward the makeshift mess area down the hall.
    •
    There were five good-looking guys on the stage six rows in front of her, but the girl’s attention unwaveringly remained on only one of them. Tom Crowley. Her soul mate.
    He was everything she could ever want. Handsome, gifted, and above all, sweet. She’d known he would be, but meeting him the other night in Jacksonville had definitely confirmed her beliefs.
    His smile had made her all warm inside, and the way he’d signed her concert program solidified her notion that he was just as enamored with her. "Happy to meet you." It seemed like a simple generic greeting at first glance, but she understood the hidden meaning behind it.
    She knew that Tom, nice guy that he was, wouldn’t want to come on too strong with her at their first meeting. Even though he felt all the urges that she did, and he knew they were meant to be together, Tom wouldn’t rush things. He would woo her slowly and steadily, showing his appreciation of her devotion by singing to her and buying her sweet little tokens of affection.
    Knowing Tom was a struggling musician, she didn’t expect, or want, extravagant gifts from him. She had no interest in his moneymaking potential. She had enough money to support both of them.
    And that was one reason